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“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade — kept in heaven for you” (1 Pet 1:3-4).

When the Apostle Peter was writing this verse in his letter to the Christians it was during very trying times. Various passages in this letter by Peter mention the people experiencing trials and persecutions (1 Pet. 1:6, 3:13–17 and 4:12–19). However, Peter urged them to look beyond the current situation and to look forward to a future inheritance. In the midst of such difficult times, the Christians are to rejoice (1:13). How does one, when life is threatened and the future uncertain, rejoice? It takes a power of soul which is utterly beyond oneself. This power can only come from a source greater than oneself. This power of our eternal hope comes from the risen Lord Jesus Christ.

During Jesus’ lifetime on earth, He made extraordinary claims that required one’s trust and demanded action of obedience. Can Jesus can be trusted? In raising Jesus from the dead, God confirmed who Jesus claimed to be and what He said to be very trustworthy. The resurrection from the dead is God’s signature on Jesus’ claims. It says that Jesus can be trusted with our lives. God accepted Jesus’ payment for our sin on the cross, the power of evil has been decisively broken and our own personal resurrection from the dead is assured. If we believe in the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, our attitude to life, death and the future – everything – becomes very different.

Pastor Neivelle Tan shared in his Easter message on 4 April that as a young Christian he struggled about accepting the teaching about resurrection from the dead. But when he simply surrendered to the risen Jesus Christ and accepted the reality of His resurrection from the dead, it gave him salvation and eternal hope. God affected a miraculous change in his life.

Rejoice, rejoice, O Christian, lift up your voice and sing
Eternal hallelujahs to Jesus Christ the King!
The hope of all who seek Him, the help of all who find,
None other is so loving, so good and kind.